Serving as primer for their forthcoming full length album tentatively scheduled for spring 2011, extreme thrash purveyorsEXCRUCIATOR are pleased to announce that their 5 song demo, entitled By the Gates of Flesh will bethe second installment in the HEAVY ARTILLERY WAX MANIAX DEMO SERIES. Strictly limited to 200 hand numbered mini lps and 500 cds, By the Gates of Flesh will be unleashed for pre-sale on Friday October 9th exclusively through the HEAVY ARTILLERY online store at http://store.heavyartillery.us

Unsatisfied with current trends and the overdone "core" music that was being heard throughout Portland , EXCRUCIATOR was formed to help revive the spirit and values of true heavy metal, thought long-since lost in the Pacific Northwest . Initially starting as a side project, the concept was hatched when guitarist/vocalist Chris Birkle proposed the idea of starting a faster, heavier, traditional metal band to long-time friend and fellow guitarist Josh Kay. The two agreed and during the winter of 2008 convinced the destroyer of strings, Craig Bridenbeck, to join on bass. Not content to sit idle while searching for a drummer, the trio began writing original material and recorded a rough one song demo using a drum machine. The demo reached the ears of drummer Marcus Hartford who quickly convinced the band with his thunderous beats that he was the right man for the job. The four found instantaneous cohesion and continued writing new material while rehearsing frequently.

Within a few months EXCRUCIATOR had built a solid repertoire of original songs and by the summer of 2009 the band entered the studio to record their first proper demo. The eight-track demo quickly gained favor amongst the Portland metal crowd and this growing notoriety allowed the four to acquire gigs with national acts such acts as Forbidden, Cauldron, Enforcer, and Witchaven amongst others. Eventually, the band’s hard work and networking allowed for them to be heard and ultimately signed by New York-based HEAVY ARTILLERY RECORDS, who upon hearing the band, were immediately convinced that what EXCRUCIATOR had to offer was a cut above the throng of young traditional metal acts surfacing in recent times. Eager to prove their mettle to the masses, EXCRUCIATOR is currently writing all new material for their full-length debut album, tentatively scheduled for release during spring 2011.